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AFTON
HISTORIAN
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Historical Society Museum
Hours:
SUMMER HOURS
Mid May to Mid Oct.
Wednesday
1:00-8:00 p.m.
Sunday
1:00-4:00 p.m.
WINTER HOURS
October to Mid May
Wednesday
1:00-8:00 p.m.
For information or to
schedule a tour,
please contact us
Stop by for a cup of
coffee and learn
more about your
communitys past.
Hand Woven Rugs
for sale:
Hand woven rugs
are for sale at the
museum.
Rug sales fund
necessities for the
museum such as
telephone, electricity,
natural gas, etc.
Please keep these
rugs in mind when
looking for a gift or
a new rug for your
own home.
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Afton Historical Society Holiday Dinner
Mark your calendar for the Historical
Societys Annual Dinner to be held
at Memorial Lutheran Church on
Thursday, January 15, 2009. More
information and a reservation form
will be sent out in December. We
look forward to seeing you at this
annual event.
One More Pick-Up Game for the Season
- Sunday, October 12, 2:00 p.m.
The Afton Red Socks base ball
team will have one more pick-up
game for this season at Pettit Park
located on St Croix Trail in Lake St.
Croix Beach.
Come and try your hand at the four
elements of vintage base ball;
1. striking (hitting)
2. throwing
3. catching
4 running
Note: We require two out of the four.
Join the fun. If not October 12, then
well see you next spring!
- Welcome New Historical Society Members
- Jay Thrall Family
Steven Swanson Family
Richard Diedrich Family
Harold and Laura Berglund
Please help the Museum by joining
the families listed above and
become a member. Membership
dues are a major source of funds
to maintain and operate the
museum. Call the museum for
more information.
Become a Member
- Go to our Join page!
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Victorian Holiday Crafts
at the Historical Museum
The museum continues its tradition
of offering Victorian holiday crafts
and refreshments to the public.
Many past guests remember these
holiday festivities as a delightful and
rewarding winter experience.
Friday, Dec. 5, 6:00-9:00 p.m.
Saturday, Dec. 6, 12:00-4:00 p.m.
Sunday, Dec. 7, 12:00-4:00 p.m.
This annual event is free, but
donations are always welcome.
Remember, the aprons and handloomed
rugs available at the
museum make great holiday gifts.
Tour of Historic Fahlstrom Cemetery
- The Afton Historical Museum will
present a free tour of Fahlstrom
Cemetery narrated by historian
Ken Martens October 12 at 2:00
p.m. The cemetery is located off
Indian Trail on Fahlstrom Place in
Afton. Call the Museum at 651-
436-3500 or Ken Martens at 651-
353-7195 for more information.
Afton Historical Society
- Officers and Board
- President: Stan Ross
Vice President: Sue Biagini
Secretary: Kris Haslund
Treasurer: Laurel Ross
Office Manager: Carol Brotzler
Board Members:
Lee/Ellen Johnson
Ken Martens
Judy Steltzner
Doug Stolzmann
Mike Thoemke
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Afton Red Socks - 2008 Season
The Afton Red Socks recruited heavily this season, and have
a roster now of 21 people. As the Vikings and Twins usually say,
It was a re-building year. We played new teams, had
some successes, and, as always, had a lot of fun
along the way. We appreciate all the cranks (fans)
who came out to
watch us, and hope everyone will check the museum web site for
our
2009 schedule of games. Three major highlights were;
Participation in the Vintage Base Ball Festival June 28
and 29 at the Washington County Fairgrounds, as part of the Minnesota
Sesquicentennial celebration,
An exhibition game against the Quick Steps on September
1 at Minnesota River Heritage Park (formerly Historic Murphy's
Landing), and
A demonstration game on September 13 with School District
197 administrators, coaches and alumnae, as part of the 150th
anniversary of West St. Paul's school district.
At the Vintage Festival, there were eight teams participating,
from as far away as Indianapolis. We played six games in two
days. The Red Socks won
two and tied one on Saturday, and lost three on Sunday. We played
on three diamonds set up in an open field, using straw bales
for team benches and
for the back-stop. We are indebted to the St. Croix's and the
Washington County Historical Society for playing a major role
in planning, organizing, and coordinating
this event. The Quicksteps won the Murphy's landing game.
The School District 197 demonstration was an exciting, hard fought
teaching/learning experience. Five Red Socks and five Quicksteps
players
teamed to provide background, rules review, and on the spot training
to a fired-up group of trainees, comprised of coaches,
administrators, teachers and
alumnae from the West St. Paul area and District 197. We got
an early four run lead and watched it deteriorate over the last
several innings as the
trainees mastered first fielding, then hitting, the
rules, and base running. The final score was 6-4. It was great,
great fun. Thanks West St. Paul!
Anytime you want another lesson, we told them, just
give us a call. |
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A Twist of Fate
It's a wonder how destiny plants us in one place or another.
Many years ago, August 11, 1940 to be exact, I had my very first
taste of Afton. It so
happened that my Uncle Edwin Schmidt was pastor of St. Peter's
Church on Neal Avenue and our family was invited to join in the
Seventy-Fifth Anniversary Celebration of that church's very first
building.
Seven of us crammed into the 1931 Chevrolet to make the journey
from
Faribault, where we lived on a farm, to the Afton countryside.
When I say
journey, it was indeed that because, first of all
we never ever went more than ten miles from our home; and secondly,
in those days with most roads graveled and the
reluctance of the Chevrolet to attain any appreciable speed it
took quite a
long time to get from one place to another. Our trip
did take us through Hastings and going over the circular bridge
was very exciting and I remember it to this day. My concern,
however, was that my new dress would be mussed in the
crowded car. I was eight years old and it was my first store
bought
dress (rather than a hand-me-down from my sisters).
Time spent at that celebration is sketchy in my mind but I
do remember the brick church with the raised pulpit from which
my uncle spoke and I remember chairs and tables set up outside
where people congregated to enjoy the mountains of food and to
visit with one another. I also remember there was a piano wheeled
out to the embankment to provide accompaniment for my aunt as
she sang Joyce Kilmer's Trees. I was enthralled by
the festivities, the graciousness of the people, the
aroma of the food and the beauty of the summer day.
AND, how was I to know over forty years in the future I would
be living with my remarkable Swedish husband in our home less
than four miles away! When I look back now, I wish I'd had the
opportunity at that time to show my dad the beauty of the area
where I would one day live. I would have taken him to the site
of my future home, which was farmland at that time, and show
him the fields of corn and grain growing sturdily in the summer
sunshine; I knew his farmer's heart would swell at that sight.
Then I would bring him to the village of Afton to point out the
location where my husband, Harold, would work for almost ten
years as a young man. Next, I would direct my dad's attention
to the blacksmith shop as well as the Afton Hotel, Selma's Ice
Cream Parlor and other unique shops. While in that area he could
see the shoreline of the impressive St. Croix River and I would
watch him enjoy the panorama of sparkling water with the Wisconsin
horizon in the background. He would not be prepared for the awesome
visual gift of a sunrise in that glorious setting! In the resplendence
of that sight, he would turn to me and say, Child, you
have chosen well and I would cherish that thought because
his eyes would never see me as an adult; his life was cut short
a mere four years later.
Living in the St. Croix Valley is, I believe, a privilege and
I shall never tire of the gracious people who inhabit the area,
nor will I stop giving thanks for the Twist of Fate
that brought me here to a enjoy a full and satisfying life in
this peaceful St. Croix Valley.
Laura W. Berglund
Copyright 2008
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Thank you to
the Family of Dave Robb
for a memorial donation and
for the special artifacts used
to create the memorial
located at the museum.
Thanks to John Young for
donating unique shoemaker
lasts to the museums
collections.
Thanks to PressEnter for
continued gratis support of
our website over the years.
Thanks to Harold Berglund
for a Swede Hill School
publication and many
valuable Afton newspapers.
Thanks to Laura Berglund
for writing wonderful stories
for the Historian.
Special thanks to our
volunteers who keep
staffing the museum for
the visitors and who keep
the spirit of the Historical
Society alive!
Thanks to Stan Ross for
arranging for the purchase of
an A-frame sign to place in
front of the museum on the
day of an event.
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